This is a copy of my talk given at Ayia Kyriaki and Saint Stephen’s in the Anglican Church of Paphos on Advent Sunday 1 December 2024. The Bible reading was Luke 21:25-36.
Prayer
Heavenly Father,
I thank You for Your word.
By the power of Your Holy Spirit,
May You speak to my heart,
And change my life.
In the precious name of Jesus I pray.
Amen.
Introduction
The word Advent simply means Arrival, Coming, or Appearance. It’s a time when we look to, and plan for, the coming of Jesus, both as a child in a manger and as King returning in Glory. As we thought about last Sunday.
The collect/prayer for the First Sunday of Advent includes these words:
Almighty God,
give us grace to cast away the works of darkness
and put on the armour of light,
now in the time of this mortal life …
These words speak to us of the urgency that should mark our faith and life at this special time of the year. The prayer encourages us not to get distracted by all that is happening in the Advent/Christmas season. The prayer also encourages us to stay alert and avoid drifting into a kind of spiritual hibernation.
Our reading from Luke 21 takes place on the Tuesday of the last week in Jesus’ earthly life. He’d been teaching about the Kingdom of God in the Temple and had made his way to the Mount of Olives where he answered the disciples’ questions about the end times.
- Know the Signs of the Times vs 25-28
And in doing so, Jesus uses apocalyptic language that will characterise the ‘end times.’ There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars and on earth … the roaring of the sea … The signs will be so terrifying that it will produce fear among the nations of the earth, vs26: Men will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken.
We know from science and astronomy that there are all sorts of cosmic phenomena that, if they were to hit earth, would be catastrophic: comets; asteroids; meteors. Then if you add black holes; spatial anomalies; worm holes it gets even worse! Perhaps I’ve been watching too much Star Trek – but you get the picture.
Earthly disturbances can be as equally as scary: earthquakes; tsunami’s, hurricanes; tornadoes; global warming etc. All of which have a catastrophic effect on the sea and the power and destruction it creates.
We’ve seen in recent times in the USA and in Spain and in the UK (even here in Paphos) just how fragile we are compared to nature’s power and how helpless we are in the face of forces too powerful to be tamed.
As a consequence of what takes place, vs25, the: … nations will be in anguish and perplexity. However, if we look carefully, we realise that in the midst of all the suffering and confusion that will occur, Jesus’ purpose of coming to earth is to save us and so we as believers can counter fear with courage in the midst of turmoil.
The world, vs27: … will see the Son of Man. We don’t quite know how that will work. God is omnipresent and so it should present him with little difficulty! However, with the advance of global communications, live satellite links etc., any occurrence, anywhere in the world, can be on our TV screens within seconds of it actually taking place. Whilst that might have seemed an impossibility a few years ago, today it’s a genuine reality.
Jesus’ appearing will be sudden, glorious and with great power, vs27. The return of Jesus in this way is NT Christianity (Acts 1:9-11) but its, probably, one of the most mind-boggling, difficult, supernatural aspects of the Christian faith to understand and, it’s because of that, it’s fallen by the wayside and been lost down the years in endless controversies. Yet it’s one of the most distinctive Christian beliefs we have.
- Discern the Coming of the Kingdom vs 29-33
Jesus tells his disciples to discern the coming of the kingdom: As we look for His coming in glory (Creed). Some who doubt that Jesus will ‘literally’ return say that vs32 applies to the generation of the Apostles, which means that the ‘coming of the Lord’ was either the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost or the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. (Luke 21:20 – fulfilled some 40 years after Jesus said this) But none of the signs Jesus mentions took place before, or during, those events.
Jesus was, I believe, referring to the generation that would be alive on earth at the time all these things take place. He was not suggesting that it would take a whole generation to accomplish these things. The Greek word Genea translated generation, also refers to: an age; nation and time. In fact, about 95% of occasions where Jesus uses the word generation in the Gospels, refers to those things.
Jesus uses a parable, vs29 to make his point. The fig tree is often used in the Bible as an image of Israel. And, in contrast to most trees in Israel (the olive, oak, and evergreens) the fig tree loses its leaves in the winter and (in contrast to the almond which blossoms in early spring) it shows signs of life later than other trees. The … sprouting of the leaves … vs30, indicates that summer is near, so the occurring of these signs is an indication that the Lord’s return is near. The point Jesus is making is that there is not a lot of time between the first signs of life and the full-blown blossom.
Some people interpret this parable to mean that the emergence of the State of Israel on 15 May 1948 was the ‘sign’ that Jesus would return soon others that the rise of nationalism around the world is the thing to watch out for.
Jesus assured his disciples that, in spite of all the difficulties Israel would endure, the nation would be protected by God and not be destroyed. And, whilst we need to be vigilant about reading the signs, yearning, for the kingdom of God, Jesus warns against a preoccupation with the end time itself.
It’s often said that in these present times we are ‘caught between’ two Advents and are in the intermediate years in God’s history and God’s plan for His world. We may well ask: how do we fit into this intermediate period? What are our responsibilities, and what should be our response? Jesus teaches his disciples to be just as concerned with the present time, the in-between time as with the end-time – even more so. They are to live lives prepared for the end at all times, both the end of the world and the end of their time in the world. They are to set their sights eschatologically and live accordingly.
There was an inscription on a gravestone, which read: Pause, my friend, as you walk by; As you are now, so once was I. As I am now, so you will be. Prepare, my friend, to follow me! Someone who read that inscription added these lines: To follow you is not my intent, Until I know which way you went!
- Watch and Pray vs 34-36
When Jesus was speaking of the imminence of the end times, he was not recommending the disciples live in a state of emergency, but of urgency. I’ve often said that we should live as though Jesus will return tomorrow and plan as though he will return in ten years’ time. Jesus was cautioning his disciples (and us) not to lapse into complacency or be lulled into a false sense of security believing his return is a long way off just because nothing seems to be happening. We are to prepare for the inevitable. We are to keep the house clean, the books in order, the table set …
John Calvin: If I knew Jesus was coming tomorrow, I’d plant a tree today. What seeds are you sowing today in preparation for tomorrow?
Vs36 encourages us to: Be always on the watch, and pray, that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man. We pray for perseverance to cope with the trials of life. We pray for strength to walk positively and purposefully as Christians. We pray against despair and doubts and fears. We pray for God’s grace in our daily lives. We pray that God will enable us to be stronger disciples. We pray for opportunities to share with others the good news of Jesus’ return.
Conclusion
This text, and others like them, does not mean that all the early Christians believed that Jesus would return in a few years – though some, like those in Thessalonica, thought he would.
However, by the time Luke’s gospel was written the Church had realised that Jesus’ return was going to take longer than they had hoped. They realised he wasn’t looking at a calendar when he said he’d return soon but looking at eternity. They regarded the death and resurrection of Jesus as the crucial events of history that began the last days. They soon realised that his gift of the Holy Spirit was ‘return’ enough for now.
And, since the next great event in God’s redemptive plan is the second coming of Jesus, the night no matter how long chronologically it may last is nearly over. The day is almost here the appearing of Jesus, which ushers in the completion of the kingdom of God. As Christians, we are to be a community of light, seeking to let the light of Jesus shine through us into the darkness of the world.
A Prayer of Thomas Aquinas
Give me, O Lord, a steadfast heart:
which no unworthy thought can drag downwards;
an unconquered heart which no tribulation can wear out;
an upright heart which no unworthy purpose may tempt aside.
Give me also, O Lord my God, understanding to know you,
wisdom to find you, and a faithfulness that may finally embrace you
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
If you are interested in reading a little more about what the New Testament has to say about Jesus’ return, you can download my handout for my study on 1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:10 here
COPYRIGHT DISCLAIMER The text contained in this sermon (except where stated) is solely owned by its author, Revd Paul A. Carr. The reproduction, or distribution of this message, or any portion of it, should include the author’s name.
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